A Charcoal Shadow
by Laser Lance 720
Summary: He and Loki had had a rather childish argument and now he needed to apologize. He hadn't seen his brother since their fight, but it wasn't a very large ship after all. He couldn't have gone far.


**A/N: Alright. Time to make the Thor fandom worst with my submission. Been wanting to branch out into a new fandom, and figured Thor was a good one to step a toe into. So here I am. I hope you enjoy. I do not own anything related to the Marvel franchise. **

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It was four days passed the destruction of their home. A great deal of empty space had been placed between them and the destruction of Asgard, but no matter how far they traveled, Thor was sure he could still see the blast in the distance. He assumed it was simply guilt that was keeping the fiery destruction of his home planet in his mind's eye. They had lost a great number of lives at the hands of his sister. Asgard's once mighty civilization was down to a few hundred devastated souls; a few hundred lives that now rested in his responsibility. Glancing out the wide bay window, Thor wondered if Loki had been right when he accused him of being unready for the throne all those years ago. He would never have been ready for this.

"Moping again, your highness?"

He turned fully, finding Valkyrie standing in his blind spot. Her hair was shoved into a tight braid, a half empty bottle in her hand. She offered it to Thor, who waved it away. "I have a meeting in the morning. The last thing I need is to suffer a hangover."

Valkyrie smirked, pressing the bottle to her lips and downing a quick swig. "Your loss. I will be joyfully nursing my hangover in the morn."

Thor let a deep chuckled escape his lips. He turned back to the wide window, crossing his arms over his chest. "Did Reijan get to you about the nearest planet?"

"Ya. Unfortunately, we're in a pretty dead zone. He said at this speed, we'll hit the next galaxy in about three cycles. We're cutting it short on food however. You better have a plan for that, cause we're going to run out at the same time."

"We're already on half rations. It won't sit well if we're forced to cut that again."

"It is what it is. You can't feed people if there's no food."

"No," Thor growled. "You cannot."

Valkyrie set her now empty bottle on the arm of his chair. "In happier news, did Lackey get to you about the water converter?"

Thor's ears perked at the idea of good news. "He did not. I haven't seen him since this morning."

They had gotten into an argument. A petty one that both of them should have been far too mature for. Loki had set off a small explosion attempting to reset some devices in the medical bay. It had cost them a few gallons of water to quell the flames and with the converter barely producing, it was water they hadn't been able to spar. It had set security off for hours, a low alarm bouncing through the metal interior for hours after the fire had ended.

Thor had gone off on him for creating a chaos that his stress just had not been able to handle in those moments. He always managed to create anarchy without intending to do so. Loki had defended himself viciously, reminding his brother that he had been attempting to fix the outdated medical bay; a medical unit that we very much needed with the growing sickness they were struggling to keep at bay. Noble intentions aside, it had made much disarray and Thor hadn't been in the mood for excuses. Loki had punch him and stormed off. He hadn't seen his brother since that morning.

"Well he fixed it," Valkyrie told him. "About a couple of hours ago. Don't ask how, I didn't follow. He'd been in there all day. Somewhere along the line, he managed to get Banner to make an appearance and they fixed it."

He had heard that Banner had managed to bring himself out of the Hulk, had crossed paths with the doctor for a brief period earlier but had been too busy to really stop and talk. He had not heard anything about Loki being responsible for bringing the doctor back to them however. It seemed his brother had had a productive day. He felt a twitch of guilt remembering the accusations he had thrown earlier.

After everything the pair had been through, allowing a petty argument to sit this long between them was just trivial. They needed to do better. He needed to apologize.

"Do you know where my brother is?"

"He was heading to bed last I saw. About an hour ago now."

Thor nodded, pressing a hand on her shoulder as he went towards the lodging section. There were a great number of rooms available on the ship, but not enough to house everyone. Families were bunked together, and as many that could be placed in a room were. Handfuls had taken up residence in a center area. Thor had been offered his own room by the people, and had gladly accepted it. The place to rest and enjoy some solidarity had been welcomed. Loki had snagged the room across from him; strangely enough the Hulk had claimed the spar bed. Thor didn't quite understand the beast's sudden trust and affection for his brother, but was just pleased that they were not at each other's throat.

Arriving at his brother's door, Thor rapped his knuckled against the steel. There was no response. Waiting a few moments, Thor opened the door. He paused again, listening for his brother's protest. There was no reply. The only sign that someone was in the room was the deep snore he instantly recognized. Pushing the door fully opened, he had to smile at the sight.

A light above the bed had been left on. Loki was lounged on the bed, his back pressed against the headboard. His head was thrown back, his black hair sticking up in all angles. He looked peaceful. What caught Thor's attention was the stack of papers littered around his brother. He entered into the room, taking them into his hand. A paused pressed against his chest as he looked at the charcoal images before him. Their mother's face stared back at him with a tender gaze. Standing beside her, their father had a firm set to his lips, but a fondness in his eyes. Every detail, down to each winkle on their father's face was expertly crafted in the deep charcoal lines.

Moving to the next page, Thor felt a tear he'd been smothering grow in the corner of his eyes. It was the training yard, with their now departed friends among them. Thor and Sif were sparing with a pair of blades, the Warrior Three on the sides with cheers on their lips. It struck him that his dearest friends were gone from him. He set the page aside quickly.

The landscape of Asgard was done perfectly in lines of black and grey. It was a view done as if one was walking from the observatory. Despite the lack of color, he had expertly captured the glow of their former home. The Bifrost seemed to shine as it stretched into the distance. It was beautiful and served to remind Thor of the home they had just destroyed.

Taking the next page in hand, Thor was startled by the change. It appeared to be dark room, a single source of light coming from the left corner. There was a coldness in the heavily placed lines. A slime figure stood in the darkness, her form lit just enough to make out in the darkness. The thing in her hand resembled a blade, but Thor couldn't quite tell. Something in the page sent a chill down Thor's spine. He made a note to question Loki about the contents in the morning.

He flipped through the pages, smiling at the happier faces. His own was among Heimdal's, Valkyrie's, and both the Hulk and Banner. There were a few half-finished scribbles. Loki had never shared this talent of his with his brother. Remembering the way he and his friends used to tease the younger prince made him quickly realize why he kept it to himself.

Putting the pages in a neat bundle on the nightstand, Thor turned his attention towards his brother. Loki's head was hanging at what would become an uncomfortable angle. He had the blankets half wrapped around his legs. A charcoal pencil was sticking out from behind his hair, another between his fingers. Taking both pencils and adding them to the table, Thor dragged the blankets away. Sliding his arms beneath his brother, he carefully picked him up and placed him properly on the bed. Loki gave a soft grunt, but didn't wake.

Thor draped the blanket over his brother, drawing it up to his shoulders. Loki shifted onto his side, and drew the blanket up to his chin. Thor smiled in amusement at the sight. His brother looked so peaceful and relaxed. It had been so long since he'd seen his brother this serene. Hitting off the light, Thor made sure to step quietly from the room. He glanced back at his brother before closing the door.

It only took him a moment to find his own bed. He dropped onto the mattress, smothering his face into the pillow. With a deep exhale, he felt the tension leave his shoulder. Glancing at the clock, he realized he had about six hours before he was due for the council meeting the next morning. Pulling the cord to his lamp, the room was plunged to darkness.

It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the lack of light. He felt a moment of apprehension when the black shadow in Loki's drawing seemed to appear in the corner of his room. He blinked and it was gone.

Thor rubbed his eyes, as exhaustion quickly overtook him.


End file.
